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(No Model.) 3,Sheets-Sheet l.

G. B. BEDELL.

BED BOTTOM;

No. 334,556. Patented. Jan; 19, 1886.

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} BED BOTTOM. Nq. 334,556. Patented Jan. 19, 1886.

WiZneJJe'J 1747/671107 @WZW 1 aem ezjfie JeZZ (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

G. E. BEDELL.

BED BOTTOM. No. 334,556. v Patented Jan. 19, 1886.

N PETERS PllOlDLllm Hpher Washmgllm D C NITED STATES PATENT rrrcn.

GEORGE E. BEDELL, OF HERKIMER, NEWV YORK.

BED-BOTTOM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 334,556, dated January 19, 1886.

Application filed August 30, 1884. Serial No. 141,852.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE E. BEDELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Herkinier, in the county of Herkiiner and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bed-Botto ms, ofwhich the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawlngs.

Figure 1 is a top or plan View of my improved bed-bottom. Fig. 2 is a side view showing the position of parts preparatory to stretching the fabric. Fig. 3 is an edge view of Fig. 1, showing the position of parts when the fabric is under tension. Fig. 3 is a front or end View of the bed-bottom when the fabric is'under tension. Figs. 4, 5, and 5 are detached views showing modifications. Fig. 6 is an edge view showing the mattress-supporting fabric arranged in an inclined plane. Fig. 7 is an end view showing one side of the bed under. greater tension than the opposite side.

Fig. 8 shows a modification of the side rails. Fig. 9 is a detached view enlarged of the joint uniting the sections of the side rails shown in Fig. 8.

Referring to Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 8, A A are side rails, adapted to fit between the side boards or side rails of an ordinary bedstead, and rest upon the cleats or ledges which are usually attached to the inner faces of such side boards.

B B are elastic stretcher-bars, each being, by preference, about half the length of the side rail, A, and having its inner end attached firmly to said side rail near its center by means of, in this instance, a socket-piece, 0, cast with an open mouth to receive the end of the stretcher-bar, which may be rounded to facilitate getting a good bearing upon the inner wall or end of this socket-piece. The

socket is provided upon each side with a down- (No model.)

der to further resist this thrust upon the sock ets I propose, when desired, to use a block, D, which fits tightly between them, and may besecured to the upper face of the side rail by a common wood-screw or otherwise.

E E are straps or clamps surrounding both the side rail, .A, and the stretcher-bars B B. The straps may be made of wrought-iron,malleable iron, or other suitable material, and in this instance are rectangular in form and of such size as to surround, and fit closely to the rail and stretcher-bar when in about the position shown in the drawings.

F F are the end rails, bolted or otherwise firmly secured to the stretcher-bars B, at or near their outer ends. 7

G represents the fabric on which the mattress is supported, and is secured at its end to the end bars, F F, each of which is usually made in two pieces, particularly when the mattress-supporting fabric is of woven wire, that being the material which I generally prefer to use.

ff are metal plates, substantially of the kind which are usually employed at the ends of end bars in woven-wire mattresses for the purpose of ornamentation; but, of course, these may be omitted.

I prefer to attach the stretcher-bars to the end rails by means of bolts b, as indicated, such bolts serving as pivots when the bed is knocked down, as will be explained.

H H are braces, pivoted at h h to the stretcher-bars, and formed at their opposite ends with notches or hooks adapted to take hold of button-headed pins driven into the under side of one of the end rails,F, and, when preferred, similar braces may be employed at the opposite end of the bed to further insure that the side rails and end rails shall be maintained at right angles to each other.

From the above description and examination of Figs. 1, 2, 3 it will be readily understood that when the stretcher-bars are placed at right angles to the end rails,F, and the ends of the mattress-supporting fabric have been firmly attached to these end rails, the parts may be placed in the position indicated in Fig. 2, with theinner lower ends of the stretcher-bars inserted in the sockets G G, with the straps E E between the sockets O C. By depressing the outer ends of these stretcher-bars the tension of the fabric may be increased at the will ofthe operator-,and the fabric may be maintained under tension by placing the clamps E E in about the position shown in Fig. 3, or by sliding the clamp longitudinally upon the side rails to such other position between the ends of the stretcher-bars as may be necessary to secure the desired tension upon that fabric. It will also be understood by an examination of Fig. 6 that the plane of the mattress-supporting fabric may be varied, so that one of its ends shall be higher than the other by simply shifting the positions of the clamps E E, substantially as therein indicated. It will also be understood (see Fig. 7) that a greater amount of tension can be produced upon one side or edge of the fabric than upon its opposite side or edge, so that when persons of dif ferent weights occupy the bed both the edges of the mattress-supporting fabric shall be equidistant from the floor, a result which will be found very advantageous and desirable under some circmnstances.

In Fig. l I have shown a modification in which bolts 1/ are employed, instead of sockets to connect the inner ends of the stretcherbars with the side rail, A. In this instance, also, I propose to use a supporting-block, D, between the inner ends of the tension'bars,to support them against endwise thrust.

In Fig. 5 I have shown another modification in which I employ upon each side of the bed a continuous stretcher-bar, I, bolted centrally to about the center of the side rail, A, as indicated at i,- or, a stirrup, i, which surrounds the tension-bar I and side rail,may be employed at this point, (see Fig. 5,) which will avoid making a hole through these parts and therefore weakening them, which might be found objectionable. Of course in all the modifications I propose to use braces,substantially like those shown at H II.

From the above description and examination of Figs. 1 to 4, inclusive, it will be seen that the constructions therein shown are particularly adapted for being knocked down, because the lower ends of the stretcher-bars may be swung underneath the end bars, F F, the bolts 6 serving as pivots, when the fabric may be rolled around these end rails so as to make a compact package for shipping; and it will also be seen that by means of the socket pieces G O, in which the lower ends of the stretcher-bars are seated, the bed may be either knocked down or set up without the use of any tools whatever, and wherever in this case the words loosely connected are employed as relating to the attaching of the lower ends of the stretcher-bars to the side rails, I wish them understood to mean any kind of a connection which will permit these ends to be attached to the side rails without the use of tools, because many devices besides the sockets might be employed to permit such attachment, and would be readily devised bya skilled mechanic without departing from the spirit of my invention. For instance, the lower ends I of these bars might be slotted or forked to straddle a bolt or bolts projecting upwardly from the side rails, although I prefer, in practice, to use the sockets, but, at the same time, do not wish to be limited thereby; nor do I wish to be limited to securing the end rails to the upper ends of the stretcher-bars by means of bolts, although I prefer this method, because of the facility with which these stretcherbars can be swung or folded underneath the end bars, as I have described.

In Fig. 8 I have illustrated a modification wherein the side bars, A, are divided at the center, the two parts of each side bar being hinged. This allows the side bars to be folded at the center after the mattress-supporting fabric has been removed,and this feature, especially when combined with the method hereinbefore described of folding the stretcherbar and the end bars and then rolling them in the flexible mattress-support, makes a bedbottom capable of being packed and stored in a very small space.

Fig. 9 illustrates the hinge-connection which the side bars shown in Fig. 8, although I do not wish to be limited to any particular form of hinge.

I am aware of the fact that use has been made heretofore in each of several constructions of one or another of the devices which I have shown; but I believe myself to be the first to have constructed and related the parts above set forth in the way which I have described, whereby numerous capabilities are combined in the article which I produce. Among those heretofore in use have been those having a mattress-support, consisting of wooden slats extending either longitudinally or transversely, or both, of the bed, these being fastened together to form a supplemental frame detachable from and resting upon a lower frame, having inclined arms; but those beds having wooden slats of this character lack one of the characteristic features of my construction-that is to say, a flexible and longitudinally-elastic mattress-supporting fabric. I do not mean that such fabric is, broadly considered, novel with me; but this is intimately corelated with the elastic stretcher-bars which I employ,

In the previous constructions with wooden the mattresssupport, and therefore no tendency to draw the stretcher-bars up, the tension upon the latter in these earlier constructions being in exactly the opposite directionthat is to say, they have been used to permit a downward yielding, but not to adjust the tension of the mattress-supporting fabric.

In other earlier constructions use has been made of stretchenbars extending continuously from one end of the mattress-support to the other, they being rigidly secured to the centers of the side bars. With these no adjusting devices analogous to my sliding clamps have been combined, those that have had any I prefer to employ between the two parts of slats there is no longitudinal contraction of I20 means for adjusting the tension of the mattress-support having depended upon rigid bolts or the equivalents at or near the outer ends of the stretcher-bars. In my case each stretcherbar extends only to or nearly to the center of the side bar, and the sliding clamp acts to resist the strain of the mattress-support; but the stretchers being at all points outside of the said clamps disconnected from the bottom side bars, they (the stretcher-bars) are free to float or yield if the superposed weight necessitate it. v

. I am also aware of the fact that use has been made of means for stretching the mattresssupport, comprising abolt and nuts secured directly to and carried by the stretching mechanism, in some cases the parts being arranged to act by a simple horizontal strain or pull, and in others the bolt acts to swing the upper ends of the stretchers apart.

I am further aware of the previous use of a bed or cot having bottom side bars, stretcherbars extending outward from the centers of the side bars and attached to the end bars which carry the mattress-support, in combination with ratcheted links depending from the outer ends of the stretcher-bars, whereby the tension of the mattress-support can be regulated; but this device does not manifest several features of mine which have been above set forthnamely, the elastic stretcher-bars and sliding clamps engaging therewith near the inner ends, whereby the outer ends can. be left free to exert their elasticity.

I do not claim, broadly. the sliding clamps by themselves, as they have been used with wooden mattress supports in combinations which did not have the characteristics of mine.

By having each stretcher-bar attached to its side bar at or near the center of the latter, and by employing pivot-bolts constructed and arranged substantially as are those shown, I can readily fold the stretcherbars relative to the end bars by swinging them in under the latter, and by having the inner ends of the stretcher-bars loosely held by sockets of sub stantially the character shown, the separating of the parts and packing them together is made exceedingly easy. As the sockets have walls which inclose the upper sides of the stretcher-bars there is a guarantee that the latter shall not, under any circumstances, spring upward so as produce any motion of the clamps, which, if it occurs, will tend to loosen the parts.

What I claim is- 1. The combination of the flexible and longitudinally-elastic mattress-supporting fabric, the bottom side bars, A, the end bars secured to the aforesaid mattress-support, the elastic stretcherbars secured to the end bars and connected to the side bars at or near the centers of the latter, and the sliding clamps E, adapted, substantially as set forth. to be adjusted longitudinally of the stretcher-bars from the inner ends of the latter, said stretcher-bars being disconnected from the bottom side bars, A, at points outside of the said clamps,whereby they are free to be bent up by the clasticity of the fabric and free to be bent down by a superposed weight, and operate both to adjust and to keep the fabric under tension, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination of the mattress-support, the end bars secured thereto, the bottom side bars, A, the stretcher-bars secured at their outer ends to the end bars,the metallic sockets for theinner ends of the stretcher-bars secured to the side bars, A, and having walls which lie above the upper surface of the stretcherbars, -and the clamps E, adapted to be moved outward longitudinally of the stretcher-bars, the latter being disconnected from the side bars, I, at points outside of said clamps, sub stantially as set forth.

3. The combination of the flexible mattresssupport, the end bars to which it is secured, the bottom side bars, the stretcher-bars secu red at their inner ends detachably to the side bars, said side bars being disconnected from the stretcher-bars at the outer ends of the latter, and pivots b,connecting the stretcher-bars and the end bars, and about which the former may be swung under the end bars without being detached therefrom when they are separated from the side bars, and after which the flexible mattress-support may be wound around said stretcher-bars and end bar, substantially as set forth.

4.. The combination, of the mattress-support, the end bars secured thereto, the bottom side bars, A, the stretcher-bars B, detachably connected at their inner ends to said side bars and disconnected therefrom at their outer ends, the pivot-bolts uniting the stretcher-bars with the end bars, and constructed and arranged, substantially as set forth, whereby the stretcher-bar can be swung or rotated under the end bars, and the braces H, hinged to the stretcher-bars and adapted to bear against an end bar, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

5. In a knockdown bed-bottom, the combination of the flexible mattresssupport, the end bars to which it is secured, the side bars, A A, divided at the center and adapted to fold, the stretcher-bars secured at their inner ends detachably to the side bars and disconnected therefrom at their outer ends, and pivots b, connecting the stretcher-bars with the end bars and about which the former may be swung under the end bars without being detached therefrom when they are separated from the side bars, and after which the flexible mattress'support may be wound around the stretcher-bars and end bar, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE E. BEDELL.

Witnesses:

G. A. 'NEALE, H. H. DOUBLEDAY. 

